How Do I Add Requirements to a Custom Template?

In addition to using the managed templates that KCM offers, you can create custom templates to meet your compliance (or other) objectives. 

In KCM GRC, the purpose of a template is to hold a set of requirements that you will work toward under a scope. You can create a template, add requirements to the template, and then convert that template into a scope. To add requirements to a template, you can import requirements in bulk, map existing requirements, or create requirements one-by-one. 

See the sections below to learn more about creating and adding requirements to templates. 

Create a New Template

Import Requirements in Bulk

• Formatting Your CSV File
• Importing Your CSV File into KCM GRC

Map Existing Requirements

Create Requirements One-By-One

Create a New Template

First, you can create a new template by following the steps below. 

1. From the navigation panel, select Compliance > Templates.
2. Click the Create button in the top-right area of the page.
3. In the Create Template window, add details to your template by following the instructions below. 
   
   1. Name: Add a template name. The name should either represent the type of requirements that you will add to the template or the objective of meeting the requirements in the template (once it is converted to a scope).
   2. Version: Enter the template's version or revision number. This information is for your own reference.
   3. Tag(s): (Optional) If you'd like, add one or more tags to group similar templates in your platform.
      • To create a new tag, type one or more words into the field, and press Enter on your keyboard. Tags have a maximum of 25 characters, including spaces.
      • To select an existing tag, select a tag from the drop-down menu.
4. Click Create to save your new template.

Once you've created a template, the next step is to add requirements. See the sections below to learn about the three methods for adding requirements to templates.

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Import Requirements in Bulk

If you already have a set of requirements that you want to use, you can import your requirements by using a CSV file.

See the subsections below to learn how to format your requirements in a CSV file and how to import your CSV file into your platform. 

Formatting Your CSV File

When you create your CSV file, please follow the guidelines below: 

1. Use the header line below.

   primary_id,sub_id,name,description

2. Enter information into each field by following the guidelines in the table below.

   CSV Field	Description of Field	Character Limits
   primary_id	Use the primary_id and sub_id fields together to specify the order that your requirements will be listed in the template and in scopes that are converted from the template. After importing the requirements, the Primary ID and Sub ID will combine to create the Requirement ID. KCM GRC uses natural sort order to sort the Primary ID and Sub ID. For more information, please see Wikipedia: Natural sort order.  Tip: You can use numbers, letters, and special characters in these fields. For example, when we create KCM GRC's managed templates, the Primary ID and Sub ID reference the section and subsection that the requirement is located in, within the framework.	1-20 characters
   sub_id		1-20 characters
   name	Add a name to identify your requirement.	1-255 characters
   description	Describe the purpose of your requirement. The requirement description can include objectives, processes, or procedures that need to be implemented and documented in order to meet the requirement.	1-65,535 characters

Importing Your CSV File into KCM GRC

After you create your CSV file, follow the steps below to import your requirements into KCM GRC.

1. From the Template Requirements section of the template page, click the Import button.
   
2. From the Import Requirement CSV window, click the Click to Upload button.
3. Select your CSV file.
4. (Optional) In the preview of requirements that will be imported, click the trash can icon to remove any requirements from the import.
   
5. (Optional) Use the ID Separator menu to select a character that the system will place between the Primary ID and Sub ID for each of your requirements. This is a visual preference. If you do not make a selection, the default ID separator will be used, as described below.
   
   Default ID Separators: If your Primary ID and Sub ID only contain numbers: The default separator will be a period (.).
   If your Primary ID and Sub ID contain numbers and letters: The default separator will be a space ( ).
6. Click the Add Requirements button to import the requirements into your template.

Once you have added all of the necessary requirements to this template, you can convert it to a scope. See our KCM GRC: Converting Templates to Scopes article for instructions.

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Map Existing Requirements

You can map requirements that already exist in your account to your template. This includes requirements that you've added from the View All Requirements page, requirements that you've added to other custom templates, and requirements in managed templates.

Follow the steps below to map requirements to your template.

1. From the Template Requirements area of the template page, click the Map button.
   
2. In the Map Requirements to Template modal window, use the check boxes to select the requirements that you want to map. 
   
3. Scroll to the bottom of the window and click Done Mapping.
   

Once you have added all of the necessary requirements to this template, you can convert it to a scope. See our KCM GRC: Converting Templates to Scopes article for instructions.

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Create Requirements One-By-One

Follow the steps below to create template requirements individually. 

1. From the Template Requirements area of the page, click the Create button.
   
2. Add details for your requirement by following the instructions below.
   
   1. Name: Add a name to identify your requirement.
   2. Description: Describe the purpose of the requirement. The requirement description can include objectives, processes, or procedures that need to be implemented and documented in order to meet the requirement.
   3. Primary ID and Sub ID: Enter unique identifiers to specify where this requirement will appear in the template and in scopes that are converted from the template. The Primary ID and Sub ID will combine to create the Requirement ID. KCM GRC uses natural sort order to sort the Primary ID and Sub ID. For more information, please see Wikipedia: Natural sort order. 
      
      Tip: You can use numbers, letters, and special characters in these fields. For example, when we create KCM GRC's managed templates, the Primary IDs and Sub IDs usually reference the section and subsection that the requirement is located in, within the respective framework.
   4. ID Separator: (Optional) Use the drop-down menu to select a character that the system will place between the Primary ID and Sub ID for each of your requirements. This is a visual preference. If you do not select a character, the default ID separator will be used, as described below.
      
      Default ID Separators: If your Primary ID and Sub ID only contain numbers: The default separator will be a period (.).
      If your Primary ID and Sub ID contain numbers and letters: The default separator will be a space ( ).
3. Click the Create button.
4. Repeat steps 1-3 for each requirement that you want to add to your template.

Once you have added all of the necessary requirements to this template, you can convert it to a scope. See our KCM GRC: Converting Templates to Scopes article for instructions.

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